The culmination of the 2008-2009 financial crises, the largest since the Great Depression of the 1930s, witnessed the near collapse of multi-billion dollar industries in the United States. United. Concerns about the economic impact of a possible collapse of these industries forced the administration of the day and members of Congress to seek legislative options to save them. Consequently, two of the largest players in the auto industry, General Motors and Chrysler, were offered financial support by the government and, in exchange, shareholders and other stakeholders had to make the necessary sacrifices in order to fundamentally restructure their businesses and engage in the difficult decisions of bringing businesses back to financial viability. In fact, almost 700 companies, including banking sector companies, have been bailed out by the government and the total amount of taxpayer money expected to be spent on these bailouts is approximately $12.5 trillion. (New York Times, 2011). ). So far, the US Treasury has spent at least $2.5 trillion (2011). In exchange, the government became the owner of significant shares in these companies. However, this decision by the US government has sparked heated debates among ordinary citizens and politicians in the past. It's a question that has until now led many to wonder whether, in doing so, the Bush administration and the subsequent Obama administration opened Pandora's box. Supporters argue that the government's decision to save the auto and financial sector was not simply about handing out hard-earned taxpayers' billions to these companies, but was a better way to support the millions of workers, businesses and of communities. Furthermore, they seem to not understand the true middle of paper in a struggling industry. Furthermore, from the numerous research papers as well as opinions generated by the 2008 bailout, an objection that the diversion of TARP funds to help the auto industry is clearly notable, especially since these funds have were specifically passed by Congress in 2008 to stabilize the ailing financial sector in a successful attempt to avoid an economic collapse. Notably, lawmakers deliberately excluded the auto industry from being included in the program. So, did the Obama administration ignore the law by committing at least $50 billion to save GM and Chrysler? For some, such a decision would cost taxpayers dearly, knowing that it was a loss of at least $10 billion. But again, the lessons learned from this dark chapter in American economic history highlight the real economic costs of government interventions..